Chiles Relleno de Picadillo (Stuffed Chiles Relleno)

I was watching the movie Tortilla Soup the other day.  One of my favorite movies. It has a really good story, but I watch it for the food.  All the foods are prepared  by two fabulous Chefs, Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger.  After watching the movie, I went through their cookbook "cooking with two hot tamales" to see if I could even find the recipes they prepared.  Must be in their other cookbooks.  Anyway, I saw this recipe and made some minor adjustments.  Roasted stuffed chiles are very Mexican-American.  I have made picadillo before, but this one is different.  It does not use your typical Tex-Mex seasoning.  I had a lot of fun making it for lunch one day. It went home with a couple of friends and now their husbands want to be my official food tasters.  Cut the recipe in half if the 12 is too many. I found people wanted at least two (2).

Ingredients:
1 1/2lb ground turkey
1 medium onion (minced)
4 cloves garlic (minced)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 cup raisins
5 Italian plum tomatoes (canned, drained and chopped)
1 1/2 tbls cider vinegar
1/2 cup toasted almond slivers
Salt and Pepper to taste

12 large poblano chiles
6 large eggs (separated)
1 1/2 tbls all purpose flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour (in a shallow dish)
3/4 tsp coarse salt (kosher)
Peanut or vegetable oil for frying

You can roast the chiles in an open flame if you have a gas burner. Rotating directly on the flame allowing the other layer to char.  Or you set your oven to broil.  Coat the chiles with a little oil and place on a tray.  Place under the heated broiler and allow to broil for 20 minutes, turning it occasionally to ensure charring on all side.  Once the outerskin is charred, remove from heat and place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Allow to steam.

To make the picadillo, heat oil in a large skillet on medium heat.  Add onions, season with salt and pepper.  Stir the onions for approximately 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes continually stirring so as not to let the garlic burn. Add ground turkey breaking it up with a wooden spoon as you stir it with the onions and garlic.  Remove any clumps and cook until turkey is completely browned.  Add the cinnamon and cloves and cook for another minute.  Add the tomatoes, raisins and vinegar.  Lower the heat and allow simmer, stirring occasionally, until the pan juices are gone and all the ingredients as well incorporated; approximately 20-25 minutes.

Once the chile peppers have cooled. Uncover the plastic wrap and gently remove the outer layer or skin. The skin should come off in large pieces.  Be very careful so as not to tear the peppers.  Cut a slit across the top (stem end) of the pepper and then down the center creating a "T" opening.  With a small spoon, remove all the seeds and membrane.  Be very careful not to scrape too hard so as not to tear the pepper.  If you want heat, leave the membrane.  Loosely stuff each pepper with the picadillo and close with a toothpick.  

In a large bowl, beat your egg whites with salt until soft peaks.  Beat in each egg yolk one at a time. Then beat in the 1 1/2 tsp of flour until flour disappears.  Heat your oil in a large heavy skillet deep on medium with enough to fry the chiles.  As the oil is heating, roll the stuffed chiles in the 1/2 cup of flour in the shallow dish. Patting gently to remove excess.  When the oil is hot, dip the stuffed chiles into the egg mixture, shake off excess and carefully place in the hot oil.  Repeat with the other chiles. Do not crowd.  The chiles will brown pretty quickly, gently roll them over to ensure browning occurs on all sides evenly.  Remove from skillet and allow to drain on a paper towel.  Cover to keep warm while you cook the rest. 

To serve, place a stuffed chile relleno on a plate, ladle with your favorite salsa (red or green) and serve with your favorite rice (spanish or cilantro lime). Enjoy!

 

Chicken Enchiladas

This is so simple to fix.  Save yourself a lot of itime like I do and get a rotiserrie chicken from the grocery store. It taste so much better and the chicken is so juicy.  I buy queso fresco from the ethnic grocery store.  I find the white Mexican cheese creamy tanginess enhances the enchilada.

Ingredients:

3 cups of roasted chicken (shredded)
1 medium onion (chopped)
3oz queso fresco (thinly sliced)
1 hand full of cilantro (chopped)
1 medium onion (minced)
4 cloves garlic (minced)
2 tblsp chili powder
1tblsp paprika
1 tsp dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 cup chicken broth
1 14oz can of tomato (pureed with small pieces/chunks)
12 6inch corn torillas (preferably fresh)
2 cups of shredded Montery Jack cheese or Mexican mix
2 tblsp olive oil
Salt and pepper

Garnish:
1 cup chopped tomatoes
1 cup shredded lettuce
sour cream

In a large sauce pan, heat olive oil.  Add minced onions and garlic. Sauteing until onions are translucent and tender.  Do not burn garlic.  Add chili powder, paprika, cumin and oregano.  Continue stirring until spices are heated and well mixed for about a minute.  Add the pureed tomatoes and chicken broth.  Stir and let boil, then reduce heat to simmer.  Season with salt and pepper and allow to cook for  another 15 minutes stirring occassionally.

In a bowl mix chopped onion and cilantro together. Set aside.  In a separate frying pan, heat a little oil and fry corn tortillas for about 30 seconds on each side and remove from pan.  In a casserole dish, place a corn tortilla and spoon about 2 heaping tablespoon of chicken, add a small handful of the onion/cilantro mix and 2 of the thinly sliced queso fresco. Roll into a cigar. Use your judgement and make sure rolls are not too loose. Do the same with the other tortillas and line them up in the casserole dish side by side. Cover enchilada rolls with about 3/4 of the sauce from the sauce pan. Then top with the Monterey Jack cheese or Mexican mix.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for approximately 20-25 minutes or until cheese has melted and bubbly. 

Garnish the top with shredded lettuce, and the chopped tomatoes.  Serve sour cream and additional enchilada sauce on the side with a side of Spanish rice. Ole!!!

Charred Chili Relleno

This is a great vegetarian dish I made  for lunch when my friends Nita and Vera came over to prepare gifts for the volunteers of My Friend's Place.  They absolutely loved it! My husband came back for more and Nita (the vegetarian) wanted the largest stuffed pepper. It is definitely in my repetoire of "must do again".

Ingredients:

4 large poblano peppers
3 cups frozen corn kernels
4 tblsp peanut or vegetable oil
1 red onion (finely chopped)
1 jalapeno, (seeded and minced)
6 cloves garlic (minced)
3 tomatoes (chopped)
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and pepper
1 cup shredded Chihuahua cheese, Asadero or Monterey Jack

Preheat broiler on low.  Place poblano peppers in a shallow pan and lightly coat with  2 tblsp of the oil. Place the poblano peppers in the broiler for 15 minutes, rotating occasionally. Remove from the broiler and allow to cool. Remove outer skins carefully without tearing the peppers (keep whole).
In the meantime, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a skillet over high heat. When the oil is hot add  the onions and until edges appear char.  Reduce heat to medium and add cumin, garlic and oregano.  Continue to stir and heat through.  Add corn and jalapeno and continue to cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Return heat to medium-high and add tomatoes; season with salt and pepper. Cook another minute or 2 then turn pan off.

Split the charred peppers open on one side only, not in half with small sharp knife. Remove the seeds with a small spoon. Place peppers in a shallow baking dish and stuff each split pepper with lots of the corn mix, top each pepper with 1/4 cup of cheese and place back under broiler to melt and char the cheese. Serve with Cilantro Lime Rice (included in this blog) or Spanish rice.

Sweet-Spicy Mexican Meatballs

This is a great recipe! I've made this for special ocassions and those potluck lunches at the office.  This is really a very easy dish, but it does take some time since you make your own meatballs.  I have made it with pre-made meatballs and it does work if you want to do that.  The homemade meatballs have more flavor since you add some wonderful spices and raisins.

This is not your everyday Tex-Mex dish. This gives you a glimpse of another part of the Mexican culture.  Serve it with the Cilantro Lime Rice and fried plantains and you have an authentic south of the border menu. 

Ingredients:
1/2 lb of ground beef
1/2 lb of ground pork
1/4 cup finely crushed tortilla chips
1 egg (slightly beaten)
1 onion (minced)
6 garlic cloves (minced)
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp raisins
1 tbsp dark brown sugar
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1 14oz can of tomatoes  (drained and finely chopped)
1 1/4 cup beef bouillon
1-2 tbsp chili powder (if you use 1tbsp, increase paprika by 1 tbsp)
1 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp cilantro (chopped)
1 tbsp mint (chopped)
2 tbsp of olive or canola oil (plus additional for frying meatballs)
2 sweet potatoes (peeled and chopped in bite-size pieces)
salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl mix the pork, beef, tortilla chips, egg, half the onion, half the garlic, cumin, cinnamon and raisins. Mix ingredients well. Using a spoon, separate even amounts of the meat mixture and create into meatballs. In a pan, add enough oil to fry the meatballs.  When the oil is heated, fry the meatballs. Avoid overcrowding as you cook.  Once the meatballs are brown, set them aside.

In a food processor or blender, combine brown sugar, vinegar, tomatoes, bouillon, chilli powder, paprika, and the rest of the onions and garlic. Process until well blended. then add the cilantro and mint.

You can use the same skillet that you fried the meatballs. Use 2 tbsp of oil (remove excess) from the pan. Once the oil is heated, add the chopped sweet potatoes and cook until tender and light golden brown. Add the sauce from the food processor and meatballs.  Cook for approximately 10 minutes until the sauce is hot and the meatballs are heated  through. This gives the flavors a chance to combine.  Season with salt and pepper.

Cilantro Lime Rice

This goes great with any latin dishes. With a rice cooker, it practically cooks itself. I've made this without the wild rice and found it does not change the flavor. The wild rice adds a great texture. If you do not have a rice cooker, you can still make this on top of the stove.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp vegetables oil
1 small onion (minced)
5 garlic cloves (minced)
3/4 long grain rice and wild rice mix
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 lime (juiced)
2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
salt to taste

Heat oil in a pan, add onion and garlic, stir constantly until translucent.  Add the rice and continue to stir (approximately 2 minutes). With a rice cooker: move the content of the pan to the rice cooker and add the broth. Turn the rice cooker on and and allow the rice to cook.

On the stove: add the broth and allow to boil. Reduce the heat to low and cover.  Simmer on low for approximately 15 minutes.

When rice is done, add the lime juice and cilantro; mix and fluff up the rice.  Add salt to taste. Serve with your favorite latin entrees.

Picadillo

Comfort food. This is what this dish means to my family. It must mean the same to so many different cultures since they have their own version (Spain, Mexico, South America, Philippines, the Caribbean). Another very easy and adaptable recipe. You can serve it over rice or encase it in pastry dough, fry or bake and you have a Latin pastry called "empanada".

Feel free to change it up a bit. It is one of those "can't fail" recipes. That's what I did and came up with our favorite version.

Ingredients:

1 calabasa or pumpkin like squash (i.e. acorn)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 1/2 lb of good ground beef

1 onion (minced or chopped)

1 bellpepper (seeded and chopped)

4 garlic cloves (minced)

1 1/2 cups beef broth

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp sugar

1/3 cup pimiento stuffed olives (sliced)

1/2 cup raisins

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp dried oregano

salt and pepper to taste

Peel and cut the squash into bite size pieces; discard seeds. Heat olive oil in a skillet, add ground beef, onion, bellpepper, squash, and garlic. Brown the beef, stirring constantly breaking up the beef. Cook vegetables until softened; remove any excess fat. Add cumin, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook spices until heated. Add beef broth, tomato paste and sugar. Stir constantly until tomato paste disolves; bring to a boil; add raisins and pimiento olives. Reduce the heat to low; cover and simmer, stirring occasionally for another 15-20 minutes until squash is tender and most of the liquid has evaporated. Spoon over rice and enjoy.

Note: sweet potato can be substituted for the squash. For a Philippine version use potatoes. For a Caribbean touch, add a 1/4 cup of rum when adding the broth. Any long grain, jasmine or basmati rice works great with this recipe.